Flowery Hair: A Maidservant

Chapter 397 Plum Blossom Hairpin Part 4

The warm room fell silent for a moment, with only the broth in the hot pot still bubbling.

Consort Chun frowned and gently comforted him, "Perhaps there are urgent matters at court, which is why His Majesty changed his mind at the last minute..." She then turned to Xiao Nianzi, "Go and inquire outside..."

"No need."

Meng Shu raised her hand to stop her, and gently tapped the celadon teacup with her fingertips.

Xia'er brought in warm water and whispered, "Your Highness, why don't you let me go and find Granny Yu?"

Meng Shu nodded slightly, "No need to rush to ask any questions, just act as you normally would."

Xia'er accepted the order, and Meng Shu and Consort Chun washed their hands with warm water, took the handkerchiefs handed to them by Lvliu to wipe their hands, and said gently, "You may all go and have your meal."

After everyone had cleared the food table and left the warm pavilion, she said to Consort Chun, "...I've thought it over and over, and if there's anything going on with Consort Qing, it must be because of that red gold butterfly and pearl hairpin she sent."

She poured Consort Chun a cup of tea, a slight smile playing on her lips. "Wan'er, don't worry, I have my own way of handling this."

Upon hearing this, Consort Chun sighed, "It's truly speechless. I feel sorry for Shu'er. First, they send over an old item to annoy people, and then they turn around and try to find fault with Shu'er?"

Consort Chun grew angrier as she spoke, and lightly tapped the table with her slender finger.

"I'll have Manager Gong send in some new jewelry later. Aside from pearls, which are considered excessive, I'll have anything—pink, black, purple—tourmaline, agate, cat's eye—we'll have Shu'er wear them in rotation. Even the flowerpots in her bedchamber will be replaced with jade..."

Seeing that her cheeks were flushed with anger, Meng Shu couldn't help but laugh and took her hand, "Good Wan'er, calm down, it's not worth getting angry over these people."

Following up on Consort Chun's words, she smiled and said, "You've reminded me. I'll put out the dowry that Madam gave me later. Even the Duke's mansion probably hasn't seen those rare items before."

Consort Chun was still angry, but after calming down a bit, she said, "My mother mentioned to me before that this year's winter tribute of leather is the last one, and the trading company will no longer accept royal business in the future."

"The madam is always wise to retreat from the rapids."

Meng Shu helped Consort Chun sit down on the soft couch. Consort Chun opened her mouth but didn't ask Meng Shu how she planned to deal with the situation. She only said, "You always have the best ideas, so I won't ask any more questions. But if there are any difficulties, please remember to send Green Willow to Huining Palace to deliver a message."

As the snow outside the window gradually subsided, Mengzhu and the others finished their meal in the small kitchen. Consort Chun then got up and returned to Huining Palace, leaving a few shallow footprints on the snow.

About half an hour later, Meng Shu woke up from her nap. Green Willow heard the noise, tiptoed in, helped Meng Shu sit down in front of the dressing table, and carefully combed her hair.

“Your Highness, we were having dinner in the small kitchen just now, and Mengzhu seemed to be in a very good mood. She was especially warm to us, Donggua and me. Before we left, she even pulled us aside to thank us privately.”

"Huh?" Meng Shu had just woken up and hadn't quite reacted yet. "Is Aunt Mei coming back soon?"

"It's only Shen Shi (3-5 PM) now, they should be here soon."

In the bronze mirror, Meng Shu's eyes gradually cleared. "Meng Zhu is thanking you on behalf of the Madam. I think Wan'er's state of mind has really changed. In a few days, we must find a way to get the Emperor to visit Huining Palace more often. Once Wan'er is pregnant, we will have lived up to the Marquis's family's kindness over the years."

Green Willow paused, then said softly, "Yes."

After combing her hair, Green Willow helped Meng Shu to the outer flower hall. "Xia'er went to Zhaoqing Palace, but didn't see Granny Yu."

"The fact that Granny Yu is avoiding us speaks volumes. Go and get that plum blossom pearl hairpin from the storeroom..."

......

Inside the Funing Hall.

Jingming stood with his hands at his sides, secretly calculating that at least a cup of tea's time had passed, and the Emperor hadn't even turned a single page of the memorial in his hands.

A drop of vermilion ink fell on a corner of the memorial, spreading into a dazzling red plum blossom.

The Emperor was clearly distracted, and Jingming couldn't help but feel a pang of worry for the official who had submitted the memorial.

Everyone in the palace knows that even a single ink stain, let alone an unintentional scratch on a memorial being reviewed, will cause the officials to spend three to five days anxiously trying to decipher the Emperor's meaning...

Jingming coughed lightly and bowed to offer a cup of warm tea.

"It is already past 3:45 PM. Your Majesty, please rest for a while and have some tea."

The emperor then snapped out of his reverie upon hearing the sound, his gaze falling upon the dot of vermilion.

He casually flipped through two pages, his eyes showing displeasure, and with a flourish of his vermilion brush, wrote the four characters, "What use is such a thing?" Just as he was about to put down his brush, he suddenly added a line of smaller characters next to the stain: "This is a stain on my desk; I fear it would disturb you, so I have specifically informed you."

In a vase on one side of the imperial desk, several plum blossoms slanted out, casting dappled shadows in the sunlight.

The Emperor took a sip of tea, then suddenly put down his cup and said, "Go and fetch all the plum blossom jewelry from my private treasury."

Jingming accepted the order and left, returning shortly with a sandalwood tray.

The Emperor's slender fingers lingered among the dazzling jewels and ornaments, pointing to a hairpin that bore some resemblance to a plum blossom pearl hairpin. "Send this plum vase on the table, along with this hairpin, to the Cuiyu Hall."

Jingming bowed and agreed. The Emperor then added, "Report back everything Consort Jin said later."

......

Jingming was completely bewildered. After leaving Funing Palace, he headed towards Lingcui Palace.

Upon arriving at the gate of Lingcui Palace, Xu Jinxi led him through the corridor to the rear hall, Cuiyu Hall.

"Jing Neiguan has arrived." Green Willow, having been informed in advance, lifted the embroidered curtain. "It's cold outside, please come in and warm up."

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

It rained today, so I slept really well. Goodnight everyone, double update tomorrow!